In the past, a great deal of time and effort have been devoted to the development of effective ways of clutching articles of various hardness, textures, fragilities, shapes, sizes and weights, to enable the articles to be lifted by electromechanical means for relocation.
Some common tools used to clutch and lift articles include hooks, straps, clamps, and chains. These tools are usually attached to electromechanical lifts, booms, robotic arms and other similar devices. However, due to the varying shapes and sizes of the articles to be lifted, these tools cannot always be employed. Also, if an article is fragile, the stress exerted on the article by the aforementioned tools may damage the article irreparably.
Another type of device used to secure and lift articles is the electromagnet. A metal article may be secured to a device by magnetism and released therefrom upon depolarization. However, this type of device is strictly limited for use with articles having magnetic properties. Another disadvantage is that the surface of the magnetized device must come into direct contact with the article, thereby risking damage to the article from the sudden impact with the magnet.
Furthermore, mechanical and electromechanical hands, claws, jaws and the like, which are attached to robotic arms, booms and other such similar devices have also been used for the grasping and transport of articles. However, some articles are shaped and sized such that these devices cannot adequately secure the same without much time and effort. Also, some articles are of such a fragile nature that the grasping process may damage them. Moreover, electromechanical grasping devices can be bulky and cumbersome, and may require careful alignment with the articles to be secured.
Finally, U.S. Pat. No. 4,988,352 discloses a method and apparatus for implanting an intraocular lens to the eye which includes a grasping method. The lens is frozen prior to insertion into an eye so as to maintain it in a folded state during insertion. The freezing of the lens obviates the need to use a special retaining device for keeping it folded, thereby allowing a very small incision to be used. In order to insert the lens into the incision, the lens is frozen to an inserter. The minute nature of the instruments involved allow for such a process to be used. However, on a larger scale such instantaneous freezing and bonding, without the introduction of additional bonding substances, would fail to form a bond of adequate strength and size. Such a process would probably require the introduction of additional outside elements for reducing the temperature of the grasping element and creating a larger bond, as is disclosed in this invention.
The securing and lifting devices discussed above suffer from a number of problems, emanating from the article to be secured and/or lifted and the type of device used. In accordance with the present invention these and other disadvantages of the prior art are overcome.